Football player's friends share memories at visitation

Updated:
Friday, March 25, 2011 9:27 PM EDT

COLLIER COUNTY: Friday night, hundreds gathered for the visitation of Lely High graduate Ereck Plancher who died last Tuesday after completing football drills at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. ABC7 spoke to those who knew Plancher off the field.

The eve of Plancher's funeral was filled with pain and heartache. While he was at Lely, he was a star running back and from there, he went to play for UCF.

"I'll never forget as he left for Central Florida - he came over to the house to have breakfast and he just shined a light on all three of my children," said Plancher's high school football coach Chris Metzger.

Friday night, the community that knew him best embraced each other as they mourned.

"It hurts. It's something I'm going to have to stick through and I believe he's in heaven right now," said Plancher's friend Nixon Joseph.

Joseph and Plancher first met in the third grade and grew up playing football together.

"He was the fastest, I was the strongest. He was the cutest, I was the ugliest. He had straight As, I had straight Bs. It was a competitive thing that we did. We loved and cared about each other and we just wanted the best for each other," said Joseph.

Metzger moved to North Carolina shortly after Plancher graduated high school. But he came back to Southwest Florida Friday night to say goodbye and reflect on the times he and Plancher shared.

"He greeted me every morning, 'Hey coach, great day to be a Trojan. Good morning sir' and that was just him," said Metzger.

A memorial service for Ereck Plancher is scheduled to be held at the Lely High School auditorium Saturday at 10 a.m.